Inferno
by ame no itteki
Summary: That day it was not Sabo who died at the hands of Tenryuubito, it was Ace.
1. Chapter 1

**Notes:** This came about as I wondered what would happen if Ace was the one who 'died' during their childhood, thus leaving Luffy to grow up with Sabo? I don't know whether anyone has already written something similar before, but I was so curious!

Hope you like it, everyone!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own One Piece or any of its characters.

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" _Sabo was such a kind older brother."_

" _What's that supposed to mean?! Would you rather I died instead?!"_

" _I never said that!"_

" _But that's basically what you meant!"_

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 _That day it was not Sabo who died at the hands of Tenryuubito, it was the other brother—_

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There was nothing special about his decision to come to the town today. Normally Dogra and the other mountain bandits would avoid going there at all cost, but with the recent happenings between the two— _three_ —boys he could not stay silent anymore. Luffy and Ace just had another fight this morning about their other 'brother', Sabo. He and the others had began to wonder about the small blonde whereabouts for some time now. Apparently Sabo came from a noble family, and his disappearance was due to his parents wanting him back.

Thus the reason for his trip today was to find the brat and tell him about Ace and Luffy. Sabo was the only one who could take care of the two whenever they fought after all.

Luckily with the arrival of some world noble, the High Town was bussing with activities and none paid a wandering bandit like him any heed. The nobles were said to be at the port as some sort of welcoming commite for the Tenryuubito. Hopefully Sabo would be here with his noble family, and he would get the chance to speak with the boy.

He passed through what looked like pool of red paint (blood? In High Town? _Unlikely_. Maybe they just couldn't be bothered to get dirty and take care of such mess) and continued on his way to find Sabo. The blond had an uncanny attraction to the sea, similar to his other 'brothers', so he most likely stayed around the port for as long as possible.

He searched through the throngs of people— _kid with yellow hair, no, not that one, not that one either. The town just had too many blondes. Must be a noble trait or something_ —when he picked on the whispering.

"...that uncouth mongrel."

"Good riddance."

"Yes, good thing Saint Jalmack had courageously..."

"Isn't he one of the kids who always caused trouble downtown? I recognized him—"

"Well, he can't cause any trouble again now."

"What happened here?" He asked none in particular. A young man, thankfully not one of those pompous nobles, turned to look at him and scoffed, "You didn't know? Though the news already reached the dump by now."

The man then shrugged, "Apparently some brat pissed off the Tenryuubito and got shot couple of times." He jerked his head to the splatters of blood (so it wasn't red paint!) decorating the supposedly cleanest city in the whole Blues, "Brat is pretty strong, probably would be alive if they didn't leave him on a burning boat."

Dogra felt dread creep on him, a dull ill ache seemed to have settled in the pit of his stomach. _One of the kids. Always making trouble in High Town. Pretty strong_. "That brat...what did he look like?"

"The brat?" The man strached his chin in thought, "Small, maybe around ten or something. Dark hair, eyes and blue, eh, black shirt? Not sure, didn't get a good look at him. You should— _oi_ , where are you going?!"

The bandit rushed to the front line where many nobles were still clattering about, murmuring and pointing excitedly at the sea. Some of them even had a grand-looking telescope for better view of mildly burning boat drifting off the open water. Hastily fiddling with his own meager telescope, Dogra followed their example and zoomed on his target. He swallowed back string of curses as his shaking hands refused to hold the lens properly and let him focus. However, as the damned thing finally worked, he seriously wished that the telescope was broken and he could undo what he had seen.

Because lying on the burning boat was the boy that he and the whole Dadan Family had raised for the past few years.

— _Ace_.

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 _And in turn the youngest got his kind older brother back._

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Luffy was not letting go. Not now and not ever again. If he did surely Sabo would disappear and he wouldn't get to see his brother ever again. So, no, he would not let go no matter what happened. He did let Sabo breath though because the older boy was turning blue and making funny noises. But other than that, Luffy would make sure to always keep Sabo with him all the time! Giggling happily, the seven-year old looped his hand for the six, oh, seventh time around Sabo's left arm. Now, there was no way Sabo could go anywhere without bringing him along!

Sabo chanced a look at his left as Luffy's unique giggle echoed around the small room. Heaving a sigh, he allowed Luffy to do whatever he wanted this time. The kid just missed him and wouldn't do anything too bad, hopefully.

"Yes, so I was planning to send a letter to you before I leave. But Stelly somehow discovered my plan and told my parents." Sabo explained, offering his audience a wry grin, "They were furious and ordered me to be locked up till I got my act together and stopped behaving like a lunatic low-born." Here, the blond rolled his eyes, scoffing. They should have known better. As if such pathetic cage could hold him off his dream. "I managed to get out when everyone were all too busy preparing the noble's arrival. They probably think I have gone with my original plan and won't bother searching for me anymore."

"I see, it's good that you managed to escape. Everyone would be happy to know your return. Isn't that right, Okashira?" Mogra addressed the seemingly sleeping Dadan, who turned red and immediately scoffed as everyone's attention was focused on her. "H-hmph. Not like I care what happens to any of you brats."

"Shishishi...Dadan is so funny!" Luffy laughed. It felt good to have Sabo back. Now his family was complete again! "You're like Ace! Sabo said Ace always turns red when he is emba, embaiased."

"It's 'embarrassed' not 'embaiased', Luffy. And you're not supposed to tell anyone about it or Ace is going to get angry at us again." Sabo cuffed him lightly on the head, frowning. "Come to think of it, where is Ace? I thought he'd already here by now." The blond felt Luffy tense up at the question and looked down at the younger in confusion, "Luffy?"

"Ace is stupid." Luffy grumbled, grabbing his straw hat and yanking it hard down onto his head. "He got so angry just because I called Sabo kind and nice older brother." Pouting, the rubber boy looked at his feet and refused to meet Sabo's eyes, "He didn't have to hit me so hard and run away like that. Stupid Ace. Sabo is much better and nicer."

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 _Equivalent Exchange._

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Luffy was playing with his beetles when Dogra returned. After much persuasion ( _super yummy extra meat!_ ), the seven-year old had finally agreed to wait outside while Sabo and the bandits talked over important details.

"Alright! So which one of you is gonna win—huh? Dogra!" He waved to the small bandit, "You went out today, right? Sabo came back earlier!"

"A-ah," Dogra gulped, his features pale and haunted. "Is that so? That's great then..." No, it's not! To think that they got one brat back only to lost another...

"What's wrong? You don't look so good. Are you hungry? Dogra?"

In his insight, Dogra had at least waited until they were all inside and properly seated before breaking the news.

As he expected, none took it too well. Luffy and Sabo, especially, took it the worst.

"W-what'd you say?!" Luffy stammered, his shock mirrored on the faces of everyone present. "Ace is—"

"Don't lie to me! That's not something you should even joke about!" Sabo cut in, throwing himself at the small bandit. The others tried to stop him but he paid them no heed, "Don't you ever dare to joke about something like that!"

"I'm not lying or joking! Everything happened so fast I couldn't believe my own eyes. I thought I was seeing things." Dogra yelled back, refusing to back down. His mind went back to the memory of burning ship and all too familiar silhoutte he could see in it. "Everyone in the High Town is talking about it! They all saw it happen in front their eyes, and..." He took out an all too familiar black elbow guard, stolen when the nobles were still busy admiring the burning spectacle. "...the pipe was there, but I couldn't take it without causing commotion."

"Shut up!" Sabo snapped. "There's no way Ace would die!"

"That's right!" Luffy stepped forward, desperate for Sabo to be right. "Ace isn't dead—he wouldn't, Ace wouldn't die that easily!"

As one, the two picked their pipe and ran to the entrance. However they didn't get too far before the combined force of Dadan and Mogra stopped them. Mogra, choosing a more peaceful approach, pushed Luffy back with enough force to hold but not to hurt him, "Now, now, I know exactly how you feel right now. But with the state you're in and with all the troops everywhere, going anywhere is just too dangerous."

Meanwhile, Dadan, despite her injury, had easily took down Sabo and bashed his head onto the wooden floor. "Just give it up, you little brat!"

Sabo struggled, flipping onto his stomach and pushing Dadan's hand away. "Get off me!" He was bleeding but didn't seem to care or even notice. "Don't get in my way!"

The runaway noble had a wild look in his eyes as he panted, looking ready to attack the orange-haired woman. Dadan held his shoulders down, preventing him from moving. "You keep acting tough even though you don't have any real strength! What the hell do you think you can do now?! You'll just end up dead! You'll die, and everyone will forget about you by tomorrow! That's all you amount to right now! The one who killed Ace was this kingdom! This world! What difference do you think you can make?!" Dadan lifted Sabo by his shirt and began shaking him. "What a little noble like you can do?!" Tears began building in her eyes, but Dadan simply stood up and turned to her fellow bandits. "Don't let them do anything stupid!"

Wordlessly, Sabo sat up and clutched his head, squeezing his eyes shut to drive away the pain in his heart. In the background Luffy's eyes began to tear up and he uttered Ace's name, quickly breaking into sobs. "Accceeeeee!" He cried, tears streaming down his face. "ACCCEEEEEEEE!" His wails carried on for hours, disrupting the oddly quiet night and bearing the sorrow of everyone present.

" _ACCCEEEEEEEEEEEE!_ "

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 _And a new story unfolds._

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"I…I want to become stronger! Stronger and stronger...Even stronger, and stronger, and stronger, stronger, more and more. And more and more, and more and more…And just continue to grow stronger! I want to be able to protect anything I want, so I don't have to lose anything! So please—"

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" _O-oi_ , what the hell was that?!"

"That's a boat, moron!"

"I know it's a f*cking boat, jacka*s! I'm asking why the hell it's burning?!"

"By Oda. Captain! There is a child on board!"

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"— _please don't die_!"

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 **Chapter Ends**

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 **Notes:** As you've noticed, I'm changing bits of the original story and timeline to fit with my plot. This story happened after Dadan and Ace came back from the fire but before Sabo set sail. Luffy and Ace had a fight about Sabo, which ended up with Ace leaving alone to the High Town to get Sabo back. He sneaked inside during the Tenryuubito's arrival, and well, being Ace, he unintentionally drew attention to himself and made the Tenryuubito angry. He got shot and left to die on a burning ship. Yes, crazy idea I know. The details would come out later. Meanwhile, as for Sabo, he hasn't sailed away because his parents discovered his plans and locked him up. When he managed to get out, he returned to Luffy and the bandits. So, Ace ended up being the one who 'died' and Sabo grew up with Luffy. In this chapter, I made Sabo play Ace's role and speak his dialogue for most part. However, I don't plan for him to simply be Ace's substitute in this story. It will be different than canon, I hope promise!

And, well, I'm kinda new to this fandom and am afraid if I make any mistakes without knowing (`･/д＼･) so I'd really appreciate if anyone could give me comment or feedback. Please tell me what you think, guys!

(人*´∪`) Thank you! (´∪`*人)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes:** BIG thanks for all who have reviewed, favorite, and/or alerted the first chapter. Especially thanks to anonymous reviewers who have bothered to leave comments even though they do not have an account. Thank you very much **DCTeenWOLF, sapphermine, kamihoe, Everlight18, BedofRoses1989, SarakuHD, Coffee Fren, moonjumper4** , and **ABCDEFWhee**. Your reviews are pretty inspiring! There is the next chapter for you, hope you like it~

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" _Did you know that if we exchanged cups of sake, we can become brothers? When we become pirates, we may not end up in the same crew, but the bond of brotherhood we share will never die! No matter where we are, or what we do, this is one bond we can never break!"_

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 _And their story continues, with one older brother taking care of the younger._

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"Here I come, Sabo! Gomu Gomu no Pistol!" Luffy yelled, stretching his arm to launch his attack, and for the first time his fist went straight toward the older boy instead of other unsuspecting targets. Sabo looked surprised for a moment but managed to dodge quickly even as the fist suddenly snapped back and smacked its owner face.

The ten-year-old stared at the spinning spectacle that was his brother before chuckling quietly to himself. He hadn't expected the attack to reach or even come close to him at all, but with Luffy none could really be sure about anything. Shaking his head, he approached the still dizzy boy with a big grin, "That's great, Luffy! Your arm stretched a lot further than it did yesterday!" The blond praised, ruffling the boy's messy black hair. "Your attack is getting better and better."

Luffy beamed at him, eyes wide in astonishment. Usually his failed attempt would end up with a mocking laugh and bump on the head rather than a praise, "Really?" At Sabo's answering nod, he pumped his fists and shouted loud enough for all to hear, "Yatta! I really have become strong! Stronger than I was yesterday!"

" _Hmph, Sabo! You're far too soft on Luffy!_ " A cool, grumpy voice suddenly cut in. An image of small, wavy haired boy was huffing at the two, arms crossed over his chest. " _You call this a fight? No matter how much force you put into it there's no point if you can't hit anything. I told you rubber really isn't suited for battle!_ " Freckles dotting his young face, the figure snorted, " _It is really a useless power._ "

"Shut up! Don't say that!" Luffy cried out in defense, "Don't make fun of the Gomu Gomu Fruit! Someday I'll make you cry! After all I've thought up a technique more powerful than a pistol! Just you see, Ace—"

"Now, now, Ace don't be like that! Luffy is—"

But the vision vanished as if it never existed in the first place. The two immediately stopped when they realized they were talking to none but a huge boulder. They stared at the empty space where their other brother ought to be before biting their lips in silence. Luffy's eyes began to tear up, lips quivering as he muttered a quiet, "Ace..."

The sight was enough for Sabo. He's seen this sullenness throughout the weeks. It hadn't change. The dark brown eyes brimming with tears, teeth biting his lips in efforts not to cry (just yet, but Sabo knew he eventually would), continuous shaking of his shoulders, and the clutching on his hair cause his hat wasn't present (if it was, he'd be hiding his face in it).

Ceasing the agony he felt, the eldest of the duo pushes his grief down his personal abyss in order to focus solely on his sibling's. It might not be the first time they had such vivid vision of their absent brother, but Luffy usually would be the one who had it worse. He didn't know. Maybe it was because Luffy was feeling guilty for unintentionally driving Ace away that day. Or maybe it was because he was closer to Ace and had always spent more time with him. Sometimes Luffy would suddenly put his hands protectively on his head as thought he expected someone to hit him for being an idiot or a crybaby. Yet when nothing came—none yelled at him, none hit him anymore, no Ace—the younger would scrunch up and try to bury his face in his oversized hat.

Because there was only Sabo now, his nice and kind older brother, his _only_ brother. None else, none else—

"— _hurts_!" Luffy yelped in pain as someone suddenly took hold of his cheeks and pulled them _hard_. Depressing thought momentarily forgotten, he touched his reddening cheeks and stared accusingly at the culprit. A stern-faced Sabo stared back at him, unsmiling. "That hurts, Sabo!"

The blond crossed his arms, huffing, "I know." He reached for the straw hat that was hanging on Luffy's neck and put it firmly on the boy's head. "But we have promised, haven't we?" He looked directly at his brother, seeing confusion littered the younger's face before realization set in. He knew that Luffy always valued promises very highly, and this one was no exception. He watched as the raven clutched his beloved hat in comfort before offering a firm "Un."

"Good." Luffy's all ears at the soft, comforting tone. Each time Sabo used it, it was to comfort him from frightening nightmares, scary darkness, deadly snake bites, thunderstorm, fists of love, and recently _this_ , "Come here."

Luffy readily stretched himself into Sabo's embrace, burying his face in the crook of the older's neck. It always felt better when Sabo let him do this; it eased up the gaping loneliness left by Ace's death and kept the fear away. He felt a hand reached up to cradle the back of his head, soon after, deft fingers calmly ruffle his untidy locks with care, and allowed his eyes to finally slid shut. Listening to the strong, calming heartbeat of his older brother, he assured himself that it was okay. He was not alone, he still had Sabo and Sabo had promised to always be here when Luffy needed him. He was not alone anymore. It was okay.

"Feeling better?" Sabo asked quietly. The blond let a smile enter his face as the small figure on his chest hummed an affirmative. "Want to help me look for dinner? I'm craving for a bear stew today!"

That at least got Luffy's attention and he immediately perked up at the prospect of hunting his favorite meal. "I want crocodile meat!"

"That sounds good! It has been a while since we have crocodile meat. Let's go hunt some then give them to Dadan!"

"Yosh! I'm gonna catch more than you, Sabo!" Yelling out his goal, Luffy didn't wait for Sabo to answer before rushing off on his own. His unique laugh echoing loudly throughout the forest. Left alone all of sudden, the runaway noble simply shook his head and walked slowly to follow the laughing rubber boy. At least, the boy could finally laugh again. Smiles indeed suited Luffy better than tears.

Stopping few feet away, Sabo looked back at the huge boulder where Ace always loved to sit on and smiled.

 _Two older brothers and one younger brother...that may sound strange, but this bond is my treasure. Luffy may still be a weakling and crybaby, but he's our little brother._

"Saabboooooo!"

"Yes, Luffy, I'm coming now!"

For a moment, he could swear he saw Ace's smirking from where he was. But he shook his head and dismissed it as another imagination. He quickly caught up with Luffy who was already bouncing impatiently on his feet, "Sabooooo, you take so loooong! I'm getting hungry~" the boy whined, "Can we have a snack before we go?"

 _Ace, between you and I, I wonder who's the older brother?_

"Sure. How about some bananas and apples? I think I saw the trees over there."

The raven-haired boy seemed less enthuastic at the prospect of eating anything other than meat. But then it'd be better than nothing, right? Grandpa always said that he should eat whatever and whenever he could. So yummy bananas and apples should be a good snack...for now. "Okay!"

Chuckling, Sabo motioned to the younger to follow him and set on their course. "Then let's go! You can't beat me on empty stomach, can you?"

 _But I guess I would never find out, huh?_

"Of course!"

 _Don't worry. I'll take care of him for you, for both of us._

"— _starting today, we're brothers!"_

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 _While the other..._

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They were lucky to save the kid when they did, because a few seconds late then there would be no kid to save. Or at least that was what Doc was saying back then. They didn't really understand. Apparently, kid suffered some major injuries in addition to being left to die on a burning boat. Yes, _left to die_ because there was no fr*aking way kid could light the boat up on his own. He was unconscious and the boat was perfectly empty of anything but the bleeding kid and his lonesome pool of blood! Some sicko must have threw kid here after beating him up (fractured skull, bruised ribs, numerous stitches and bruises), shooting him (four bullets, three of which were still lodged inside) and of course burning him and the boat. F*cking bastard! People might called pirates dirtiest scum on earth, but at least they were not sick enough to hurt (kill!) a small child like that!

It was only by some miracles and pretty good ol' doctor that kid survived.

"I have done what I can," Doc stated, sounding as exhausted as he looked, "The repairs on his leg and arm went smoothly. Though he'll be in a cast for a good six to seven weeks at least. The damaged ribs are bandaged so they'll be held in place to heal. Those should be fine even before the cast comes off. His lung has also been successfully re-inflated. The blood loss was my biggest concern, but kid is a fighter. His vitals were dangerously low when he arrived, but he held on. I treated his burns and gave him a transfusion. He received over twenty stitches for the wounds on his shoulder and abdomen. Considering the damage to his head, I am still on the look out for the extent of his injuries; although I can't be sure until he wakes up. But like I said, he's good for now."

"For now?"

Doc messaged the bridged of his nose as to feed off the incoming headache. It hadn't been easy to take care of the kid—he was nearly dead when the crew first brought him abroad. His injuries had been severe, and coupled with how long the kid had drowned before they could save him... "Yes, for now." He replied, "Someone needs to stay with kid and monitor any changes in his condition. If he's getting worse, we might have to bring him to actual hospital where I could get access to their equipment."

Some of the burns were superficial, affecting only top layer of skin and would heal in about two weeks without scarring. Yet what worried Doc was the more serious ones where the damage extended beyond the top layer. He wouldn't know the true extend of the damage till kid woke up, though he sure hoped there would be no nerve damage. While the worst blisters might take longer to heal and even would require skin grafting, nerve damage could be damaging if left unattended. Thankfully, there was no signs of hypothermia and hypovolemia. Being left on a burning boat had kept the boy's body from losing excessive body heat due to his injury. In addition, the fire had even cautarize some of the boy's wounds, preventing further blood loss and nasty infections from settling in. Even his drowning in the ocean had somehow helped cooling the worst of the burns. All in all, kid was extremely lucky to be alive with all that had happened to him. If he didn't know any better, he would dare to say that kid must be blessed by some kind of deity for both the sea and fire to save him on their own way. Really, someone up there must love him plenty to not let kid die like that.

And to send him to a ship of Yonko...

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— _finds a new companion._

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 **Chapter Ends**

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 **Notes:** I didn't really plan for the chapter to turn out like that, but somehow it just did. Sorry if it ended up disappointing you... This chapter was about healing on the brothers' part. Luffy and Sabo needed to deal with emotional tolls that came with Ace's 'death'; while Ace himself had to be treated for his injuries. Not much on Ace's part since he was still unconscious. But for Luffy and Sabo, I hoped they were not too OOC? Unlike what happened in canon where Ace and Luffy managed to cope with Sabo's death with the help of his letter (and Ace's bonking, I swear he really took after Garp in this aspect), in this story Sabo and Luffy had no such luxury. The duo still promised to be pirates and gain more freedom than anyone else like what Ace and Luffy did in canon. But that was it. Ace didn't leave any letter for them to dwell or cry over, and Luffy was bearing a guilt over Ace's death. They was then having a hard(er) time getting over their lost.

I think if he was the one growing up with Luffy, Sabo would be the type of brother who was kind and nice but strict at times. He'd need to take on some of Ace's personalities in order to keep Luffy in line, I guess. Just like how Ace became nicer and more polite (like Sabo) in canon, the opposite happened here. So, now, rather than punches and yells, Luffy got hugs and praises from his older brother. Rather than charging on ahead, he was taught to be patient and think first. I believe it would do a great deal for his character later on, no?

Well, I'm looking forward to hear what you think. Any comment or feedback is very much appreciated. Oh, and I'm looking for a beta-reader, if anyone is interested please tell me through your review or simply send me a PM. Thanks!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes:** It has been more than a year since I last updated this one. I am really sorry for making you wait so long! I already have about 55% of this chapter done since last year, but due to some depressing circumstances I couldn't bring myself to update this one... 从´_υ｀从

However, seeing as today is January 1st, I want to post something for Ace's birthday (n˘v˘•)¬ So here you go! It might not be very well-written but hope you'll like it! ۹ (Ò ﮦ Ó) ۶

 **Disclaimer** : No own it.

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 _ **One is alone,**_

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 _He couldn't breathe. His lungs burned, his throat burned, his chest burned, everything burned!_

 _Where was he? Why was he burning? Why did it hurt?_

 _He tried to breathe, sucking in precious gulp of air, but everything tasted like smoke and blood. He coughed, chest constricting in response to the agony that engulfed his body. Pain pain pain. So much pain, it_ _ **hurt**_ _!_

 _Something bright burned beyond his eyelids, lighting up his world in swirling hues of red, orange and yellow. He cried out in pain as another wave of heat slammed into him. He wanted to move—he tried so, so hard, but nothing worked. His eyes would not open and his body would not listen at all._

 _All of sudden the heat and swirling colors disappeared, replaced by a gaping abyss which threatened to swallow him whole. He fought and fought to stay on the surface, but his struggles slowed as he sank faster into a dark, murky coldness. He lost sense of his surrounding and unconsciousness greeted him like an old friend, holding him tightly as his struggles finally faded to nothing._

 _Maybe this was the end. Maybe people were really stating the truth when they said a devil child like him shouldn't exist. To end up like this..._

 _is truly fitting._

 _With that last thought, he allowed his eyes to fully slide close, letting the darkening color of his watery prison faded slowly to black. He expected death, expected pain, or even plain nothingness to greet him._

 _Yet the next time he opened his eyes it was to the color of red._

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 _ **while two are together.**_

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"Now, if you have to choose a route to hidden treasure, there are a long, difficult road blocked by traps and marines, and a short, easy one. Which one would you choose?"

Luffy spent seconds to blink at Sabo and his thoroughly drawn treasure map, one road was blessedly empty except for random bushes and cutesy animals whereas the other was filled with sticky blue-white figures of marines and various pointy things to signify traps, and exclaimed loudly, "The one with most adventure!" He pointed, predictably, to the road full of marines and traps and grinned.

Of course in Luffy's language, 'adventure' often translated into the most winding path full of nothing but troubles and dangers. His answer resulted in a cuff on the head and one frowning older brother, "Pay attention, Luffy."

"But but it's so boring! Can't we go train or something, Sabo?"

"No. Now pay attention or I will make sure there will be nothing to eat beside cheese today."

The younger pouted at the thought of being denied his favorite meal. But if Sabo said that he would make him eat cheese then there would be no escaping it. The last time the blond had issued similar threat...the D holder shuddered at the memory of all vegetables he had to eat and two long days with mysterious absence of meat of all kinds. "But cheese isn't as good as meat..."

"Well then you better do this right. Now between difficult and dangerous road and easy and relatively safe one, which one do you choose?"

"..."

"Luffy."

"...easy is no fun, no adventure." There was an obvious sulk in the younger's tone, and Sabo fought back the urge to pull his hair in frustration. It seemed that no matter what he did there was really no teaching these D sense of danger whatsoever. In addition to their brand of glutton and craziness, thick-headed skull appeared to be another common trait of a D. But no way was Sabo going to let his little brother sail alone without at least teaching him the basic survival skills—which in Luffy's case specifically included dangerous and unapproachable things that should be avoid at all cost! So far Garp, ranked number #1 in their current list, appeared to be the only thing that Luffy ever bothered to remember.

" _Luffy_." Sabo called and Luffy automatically closed his mouth. When Sabo used that voice, it was best to obey. The consequence would be severe to anyone who didn't. "It's a captain's responsibility to ensure his crew's safety. You don't want your crew to get hurt right?"

"My nakama are strong! They won't lost easily!"

"Yes, I know." The runaway noble responded, not letting himself be swayed by Luffy's all too optimistic view. As much as he wanted to believe what the boy said to be true, he wasn't taking any chance. Never again. Losing one brother was enough, he didn't want a repeat of the last time. "Sometimes strategical retreat is a better choice than charging recklessly." His mind drifted back to a certain hot-headed raven and his persistence of never backing out of any fight before he quickly clamped the painful memory shut.

"Sabo?" Luffy called out. He poked his head into the older's personal space and looked questioningly at him, "What is that sa-satay, sataytegi have anything to do with my nakama?"

"It's 'strategical' retreat not 'satay' or 'sataytegi.'" Sabo corrected automatically, pretty much used to Luffy's ability to mispronounce even the simplest words. "It means we avoid unnecessary fighting, withdrawing from difficult or dangerous situation."

"Ah, you mean running away?" The younger boy pound his fist in understament. Sabo nodded and prepared himself for the denial that was sure to come. It took about thirty seconds for the meaning to finally sink in and for Luffy to yell out his disagreement, "No! I'm not a coward! I won't run away!" Huffing, Luffy crossed his arms and gave his brother a stubborn look. The two traded stares for a good two minutes before Sabo finally relented, realizing that whenever Luffy got that particular kind of look on his face, not even the temptation of unlimited supply of meats could sway him. The ex-noble wasn't going to give up that easily though, "Listen, imagine you are facing Garp—"

"Grandpa is here? Where? Sabo we have to run now!"

Really, it was a good thing that Sabo was gifted with almost endless amount of patience while dealing with idiots, especially if the said idiots happened to be related to him in one way or another. Because if he didn't then surely he would give up few minutes after meeting both Ace and Luffy. "I said _imagine_ , Luffy. Garp isn't here...yet. Now just _imagine_ you meet Garp as pirate, you have to retreat and avoid fighting him, okay? And that works with the other marines too. If you have bad feeling about any of your opponent, make sure to get away as fast as you can."

Titling his head in confusion, Luffy looked at his brother's determined expression before finally nodding. He didn't really understand, but if Sabo said that it was important then it must be! "Mmm...kay! Don't worry, Sabo! My ship is gonna have this super amazing jet that can make it fly away from Grandpa!" The straw hat-wearing boy chirped happily. Sabo found himself smiling at the idea, it'd be amazing indeed if a ship can fly away from any attacker. "It'd be soooo cool with a loud _boooom_ and _whooosh_ the ship will jump so high. Grandpa won't be able to hit me!" Clutching his head in remembrance of the pain he received from the infamous Fist of Love, he whimpered, "Grandpa's fist hurts..."

Knowing first hand how painful Garp's training could be, the blond nodded in quick agreement. The old man was so strong that it was almost scary. He really didn't want to find out what would happen when they did meet him as pirates in the future. Shaking his head to get rid of the terrifying thought, Sabo called Luffy to resume their lesson. He skillfully ignored the whine and moan of dismay that followed his exclamation. The talk about Garp and flying ship, much like any topic relating to Luffy's imagination, would be getting out of hand soon enough. Better put a stop on it when he could. "Now, let's talk about what to do when you lose your ship. And no, Luffy, you can't simply decide to float in a barrel and hope someone will find you eventually..."

"Shishishi...that sounds fun!"

An exasperated sigh, " _Luffy.._."

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 _ **And each they spin their own tales...**_

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A boy slept undisturbed in the middle of a wooden deck. Once in a while, he would shift, mumble some unrecognizable things and then continue snoring again. Young eyes closed in sleep as short, raven locks danced along with the wind.

Sitting a few feet away, a red-haired male watched over the slumbering figure. He took a large sip of his rum and hummed happily. Today has proved to be a really good day so far. The weather was nice and none had bothered his drinking. The cook had also prepared some kind of meaty dishes which went well with his rum. Now he was pleasantly full, in a good mood, and still had much drinks to enjoy in peace.

Benn had come earlier to warn him about their little troublemaker, stating that if he's going to be useless and drinking all day, he might as well do some babysitting while the crew was busy collecting supply. Apparently, kiddo was in the middle of eating competition with Lucky when he suddenly fell asleep. While Lucky would be more than happy to wait for him to wake up and continue their eating, Yassop had appeared and dragged the larger man away to hunt for food. Their supply had diminishing rapidly now that they have two bottomless pits to feed, and seeing as the place they had docked was an uninhabited island with gigantic animals and other wildlife, the crew had decided to look for their supply the old way. Which involved plain ol' hunting, picking up fruits, vegetables and any edible plants, as well as collecting whatever that might be available in the island.

He thought back to time they first saved the boy and couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled from his throat. Man, Benn was throwing a fit when he discovered that he had picked up a random brat out of nowhere and wanted to keep him—

 _("—two weeks! I was only gone for_ _ **two whole weeks**_ _, picking up sake that you so forgetfully drank even though you said it yourself that it was the sake you promised Whitebeard." The dark-haired man narrowed his eyes, temper flaring dangerously after long days of going back forth from one end of East Blue to another solely for the sake of getting_ _ **more**_ _sake for his captain and the other Yonko. "Now tell me—and don't even think of giving me that look, captain—how you end up picking up a kid, an_ _ **injured**_ _kid, and letting him stay aboard?!"_

" _Cap'n nearly got his hand tore off by the fucking brat." One of the crew piped up unhelpfully, evoking laughs from almost everyone present. The red hair grimaced, murmuring a quiet "traitor" under his breath as he faced the glare of his first mate. Surely answering he just felt like it would work perfectly, no? Well..._

" _I can...explain?")_

He snickered at the memory of Benn's expression at his so-called 'explanation.' The man had been displeased for sure, yet he had been one of the firsts to warm up to their little addition and show him everything he needed to know in order to survive on sea as well as to survive the crew's particular brand of craziness.

The red head chuckled, he always knew that his first mate wasn't really as harsh as he appeared to be. Kiddo might be a trouble magnet, as what the crew said, but Benn seemed to develop a soft spot for the younger raven no matter what.

His mind then drifted back to the first time he met their little troublemaker. Someone from the crew had mentioned that they had saved a child from a burning boat. Curious about how there was a child alone this far on the sea and about how he ended on a burning boat of all place, the Captain had gone to the infirmary to look at their new passenger. However, he clearly didn't expect to be attacked by what felt like a small blast of _haki_ as soon as he stepped into the room. The older male was momentarily surprised, having not expected to even encounter someone possessing such ability this far from the Grand Line. His moment of weakness cost him a vicious bite on his arm, courtesy of the barely conscious child the crew had just saved. He sighed. Really, he knew kiddo had an appetite to rival any D but he couldn't be _that_ hungry to take a bite of him during their first meeting. And boy he was quite rude too, suddenly falling asleep ( _unconscious, captain!_ ) after biting him like that! He complained lots to Doc about it though—

 _("—he bit my hand!"_

 _Doc rolled his eyes, "Do you need me to kiss and make it all better, captain?"_

" _The kid bit my hand!"_

 _Sighing, the man counted slowly to ten before attempting to answer. It had not been long since kid woke up, and while he was busy taking note of kid's condition, the captain hadn't stopped bothering him ever since. "It's a normal reaction. Most people don't take very well waking up in unfamiliar surrounding, especially if they are injured or suffering from memory loss."_

" _Memory loss..." the Captain stopped, "he has amnesia?"_

" _Seems like it. The damage to his head was quite severe, not to mention he was underwater for more than five minutes. Kid was bound to have some serious complications as soon as he wakes up. Memory loss being one of them."_

" _Oh." The red-hair blinked, looking at the space where he knew the little brat was resting, and frowned, "but he still bit my hand."_ __ _My_ _ **only**_ _remaining hand, the man wanted to add with a sulk. He had recently lost his arm, clearly he didn't fancy losing another one so soon._

" _Kid wasn't really conscious when he did that. When he first woke up, he must have perceived you at the biggest threat and decided to attack. Have to say kid got one hell of instinct." Doc looked at the sulking adult and added, "and one hell of a bite it seemed. Really, you didn't even wince when you lost your arm back then. But now you're kicking a fuss over a simple bite."_

" _It wasn't simple. His bite hurt."_

 _Doc put down his pen and released a long suffering sigh. He wouldn't going to get anything done with the captain around, whining about his poor bitten hand. The first mate usually was the one who take care of their captain during his fits, but since he wasn't around... "Don't you have anyone else to bother, captain?"_

" _Nope!"_ )

—and annoyed the hell of the man. He found out that kiddo might be suffering from amnesia, and since Doc was never wrong before, he was not surprised when it turned out to be true. Kiddo didn't remember anything about himself, not his name, origin and what else. He was quiet persistent in staying with them too, refusing to be left in any passing island and knocking anyone overboard when they tried to force him.

"…am not—mine!" A sudden shout followed by rustling of clothes alerted the man of his companion's awakening and finally put an end to his little wondering. He put down his bottle and turned to face a yawning, droopy eyes raven. He smiled and watched the boy looked around his surrounding, trying to catch on his whereabouts and what he had been doing there prior to his sleeping fit. It didn't take long before the boy finally blinked and recognized the older male who waved cheerfully at him. "Shanks!"

"Have a good nap, Ace?"

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 **Chapter Ends**

 **-4-6-4-6-4-6-4-6-**

 **Notes** : I apologize about the quality of this chapter. It is not one of my best works. I haven't been into One Piece for a while so I am still trying to get the feel of the characters again. If some (or maybe all) of the characters seem OOC, then please forgive me （×÷×）人

Regarding Sabo and Luffy's part, I believe that since Sabo is the smartest among the brothers he will try to teach Luffy in other subjects in addition to their physical training. But Luffy, being who he is, will prove to be a very difficult student for Sabo to handle. It will be interesting to see if Sabo's teaching indeed pays off in the future (≧艸≦*)

And as to where Ace ends up, I guess you finally find out in this chapter. Although I am not sure how you'll take it since I made him stay with Shanks rather than Whitebeard（/｡＼) Hope it won't make you leave this story because there'll be more twists in the future~

If you have any comment or feedback concerning this story then please don't hesitate to send them to me! I'd be happy to hear what you think! (；人；)

(人*´∪`) Thank you! (´∪`*人)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes** : A guest reviewer asked me "If Ace doesn't remember anything, how does Shanks know his name?" Many also asked similar questions. Well the answer to your questions will be in this chapter! I originally planned to have this included in the previous chapter. But since it'd make the chapter too long, I decided to separate them into two. This chapter took place before chapter 3. It'll explain how Shanks 'knows' Ace's name. I have done my best (ง •̀ω•́)ง✧ (ง •̀ω•́)ง✧ hope you like it!

A special title for this chapter: _Because people with initial S in their name is destined to be the greatest!_

Enjoy! (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ

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 _ **How he got his name (back)**_

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 _Have you ever woke up and not knowing who you are? Your head would feel so light and heavy at the same time. It would feel strangely empty, like there was a giant gaping hole where the memory was supposed be. You would be left wondering, always wondering who you were and who you are going to be._

 _He did._

 _He woke up one day, finding himself in an unfamiliar place and surrounded by equally strange people. He remembered feeling hopeless and very very afraid (_ _ **Who is he? Where? What happened? Why is he here? Who are they? What are they doing?**_ _) He remembered pain, a lot of pain, and someone trying to reach for him (_ _ **don'tcomegetawaydon't!**_ _) He remembered lashing out, attacking whoever was closest to him, the_ _ **most dangerous**_ _one. He remembered being pulled back and restrained. He had let go, but not without biting someone and leaving his mark. People, strange unfamiliar people, had subdued his trashing and sent him drifting back to unconsciousness not longer after._

 _He_ _ **didn't**_ _, he_ _ **wanted to**_ _. He wanted to remember!_

 _Who is he? What happened to him? Why he feel so lost?_

 _Can someone, anyone, tell him? Someone_ —

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Hearing a now familiar thud, Shanks opened one of his eyes to look at the small raven sitting a few feet away from him. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought that the boy was lounging on the deck like he did. But then he had found out the boy following him far too many times to be considered a coincidence.

"Say, why did you follow me again?" He asked, curious. Hopefully it had nothing to do with him being the first to be bitten by the boy or something like that. Since their first 'meeting' where the boy had ended up biting his arm in his half-conscious state, he always felt the boy's stare following his every move. It surely didn't feel comfortable being stalked by a child of all people. If only kiddo decided to follow Benn or the others as intensely...

The younger looked at him for a moment before shrugging, "Don't know. You just feel more familiar than the others I guess." His answer, if any, further baffled the pirate captain. Shanks didn't remember ever meeting the boy before. Sure there was Luffy, and the raven looked like he was around his age or more. But he was certain that there was no other child in Fuusha at that time. There was also the nagging feeling he got whenever he looked at him closely. Scanning the boy further, the redhead observed the freckles, short dark hair and glaring eyes. There was surely something familiar about them. The boy didn't seem like a stranger—his grin, his glare, even his enormous appetite closely resembled someone he knew long time ago. "Sure thing, kiddo."

The ten-year-old face scrunched up in dislike, "Stop calling me that! All of you always call me brat, kid or kiddo. You guys are so uncreative." He threw his face to side, huffing, "...stupid old men can't ever think of one simple name."

" _Oh,_ " Shanks grinned. His grin was positively wide, looking almost wicked at the revelation. So that's why kiddo had followed him around... "do you want me to give you a name?"

The boy immediately flushed. " _N-no!_ Who gives you such stupid idea?!" He turned away to hide his embarrassed blush. Suddenly the wooden floor to his right looked very interesting. He couldn't believe he actually said something like that to the older male. What was going to happen now?

"Gwahahaha! Don't be shy, kiddo!" Grinning, looking positively giddy at the prospect of naming his own kid (well not really HIS per se but you get the point), the redhead made a note to brag about this later. And everyone always made fun of his naming skill! Just see, he was going to prove to them that he wasn't so self-centered as to name everything after his signature Red color!

He ruffled the boy's wavy locks good-naturedly and grinned, "Now let's see what kind of name I should give you..."

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" _Ha! Ace of Spades, eat that!"_

" _...do you even know that we are playing poker? Honestly, you shouldn't bother to ask me for a game if all you do is throwing that card around." The Dark King sighed, showing his combination of Two Pair. Not a very good combination but it would win against the single Ace of Spades for sure, "I win, again."_

 _There was momentarily silence as captain and first mate trading looks over the pack of cards. Until finally the dark haired male huffed and crossed his arms in defiance. "Ace of Spades is the strongest card!"_

" _Your obsession to that card is unhealthy. What next? You going to name your kid 'Ace' or 'Spade'?"_

 _Roger grinned, a mysterious glint shining on his dark eyes, "You'd never know my friend."_

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"Spade..."

"Huh?"

"Your name!" Shanks responded enthusiastically, grinning full force at the confused ten-year-old. "Spade sounds good, don't you think? See, now we can match! People with initial S in their name is destined to be the greatest!"

The boy didn't say anything and simply gave a flat'are-you-stupid-or-what' look that reminded him too much of Benn. There was no doubt that the boy had spent too much time with his first mate to inherit that particular look. The Red Hair sulked. "You can just say you don't like it you know. No need to imitate Benn and his disapproving stare."

Silence swept between the two and the younger simply glared at the sulking male. Now he really regretted even said anything to him. That annoying, childish—

"...e"

"What?" He spat out, sounding less venomous than he intended.

"Your name," The older male replied, finally ceasing his mock sulking. He looked up at the boy with a soft, nostalgic smile. "will be Ace."

"Ace..." The boy tentatively tested out his new name, feeling an odd blossoming warmth in his chest accompanied by sense of Deja vu. "A-C-E. _Ace._ "

"Do you like it?"

"...yeah."

"Gwahahaha...Welcome to the Red Force, Ace!"

Ace rolled his eyes, but a small smile was visible on his face. "You're a bit late, old man." Ignoring the indignant sputter of _"I'm not old!"_ from one Red Hair captain, the boy allowed the feeling of happiness to consume him and laughed for the first time in days. He finally had a name now! Ace! His name was Ace, and he was not alone anymore...

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 **Chapter Ends**

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 **Notes:** I think my writing style changes... Must be because I haven't been writing for so longヾ(^^ゞ) I hope it doesn't get worse though. Think I need to re-watch OP again in order to get the feel of the characters. Really don't want to make them too OOC or anything（πーπ）

So what do you think of this chapter? Like it? Hate it? Please leave a review on your way out, okay? :;(∩´﹏`∩);: I'd love to hear what you think!

 **Answers to guest reviewers:**

 _ **ASL**_ _: Thank you! I was afraid that I made some of them too OOC or something. I am really happy that you find the characters to be in line! Please don't hesitate to tell me if you find the characters acting weird or OOC in the future!_ _(._.)_

 _As for your question, it's already in this chapter. Hope you like it! Looking forward to hearing more from you! (*^-_ _ﾟ_ _)v_

 _ **Imsosleepy**_ _: Thanks for the review! Glad that you like the idea. I've always wanted to read about Shanks raising Ace too! Hope I won't disappoint you with my version_ _ლ_ _(_ _・_ _﹏_ _・_ _ლ_ _)_

 _ **BlueAutumn12**_ _: Thank you! I'll try my best to fulfill your expectation! And yes, poor Sabo is having difficulties teaching Luffy common sense. Let's hope his effort won't be wasted (*_ _-(-*)_ _ゝ_

 _ **Guest:**_ _(/ε_ _＼_ _*) you're making me blush! I don't know if I deserve such praise! I will work more on my writing so I don't disappoint you (_ ๑ _ÒωÓ_ ๑ _) please continue reading and reviewing my story!_ _＼（Ｔ_ _Ｔ）／_

 _ **Aria Heaven**_ _: The answer is in this chapter. Thanks for the review! (´_ _`)_


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